Air conditioning device



Fell 1967 J. L. VlECELl ETAL 3,304,066

AIR CONDITIONING DEVICE Filed July 6, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet l l l 107- L ag? 5 03 W IZZNTORSI F ,Lec

1967 J. L VIECELI ETAL AIR CONDITIONING DEVICE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 FiledJuly 6, 1964 k (2 INVENTORS V 1 J L. VlECELl ETAL AIR CONDITIONINGDEVICE Feb. 14, 1967 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed July 6, 1964 W H 6 7 4 3M IfI F i m m M I in w n 6 5 m 9 1 H 9 7V H m 11 1 n I w m 4 United StatesPatent 6 ice 3,304,066 AIR CONDITIONING DEVICE Joseph L. Vieceli, LaGrange, and Robert H. Rayfield,

Hinsdale, 111., assignors to Sunbeam Corporation, Chicago, 111., acorporation of Illinois Filed July 6, 1964, Ser. No. 380,573 12 Claims.(Cl. 261-29) This invention relates to portable air conditioning devicesand more particularly to improvements in portable power drivenhumidifiers for introducing moisture into the ambient air.

Devices for inducing moisture into air have been known and used for manyyears. The need for a unit to increase the amount of moisture in a homeis particularly acute in cold climates where the relative humidity inthe home on a cold day may drop to only one or two percent. A number ofsmall room humidifiers have been manufactured to raise the humidity in asingle room. Most of these units are noisy in operation and have limitedhumidifying capacity. Some humidifiers operate on a principle ofevaporating water which leaves a heavy deposit of minerals from hardwater on the heating chamber thereby decreasing the efiiciency of theunit while other humidifiers use a mechanical spray method of hurlingminute droplets of water into the air which causes small particles ofminerals from the water to be deposited around the room. Thus, there isa need for a large capacity portable humidifier for effectivelyhumidifying a whole home and which would, at the same time, be quiet inoperation. Further, the humidifier should not cause mineral deposits inthe home but rather should retain the minerals within the humidifier inan area which does not decrease the efiiciency of the unit.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide aportable humidifier having a large capacity for introducing moistureinto the ambient air.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improvedportable humidifier which is quiet in operation.

It is an additional object of the invention to provide an improvedportable humidifier having the motor and pump assembly mounted in such amanner as to dampen the vibration transmitted to the housing.

It is still a further object of the present invention to provide aportable humidifier having an improved centrifugal pump to uniformly andaccurately disperse liquid therefrom.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an improvedportable humidifier which substantially prevents the minerals in thewater from being expelled from the humidifier and which is soconstructed that the minerals in the water are continually flushed backinto the water reservoir.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent as the following description proceeds and the features ofnovelty which characterize the invention will be pointed out withparticularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of thisspecification.

For a better understanding of the present invention reference may be hadto the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a portable humidifier embodying myinvention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary top plan view of the humidifier ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 33 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the upper portion ofthe centrifugal pump taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 3;

3,304,066 Patented Feb. 14, 1967 FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional viewtaken along line 5-5 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a bottom plan view of the water level gauge illustrated inFIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along line 7-7 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 8 is a schematic wiring diagram illustrating the electricalcircuit; and

FIG. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the motor mountingtaken along line 9-9 of FIG. 2.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a portable humidifierdesignated generally by the reference numeral 11 which comprises arectangularly shaped housing 12 having a top 13, bottom 14, and sides 15and which is supported by a plurality of feet 16. Preferably, thehousing is fabricated of galvanized sheet metal and may be attractivelystyled by placing an imitation wood finish thereon. Enclosing thehousing 12 are a rear closure plate 17 and a front 18. Both the rearclosure plate 17 and the front 18 are secured to the housing 12 by aplurality of fastening means, such as sheet metal screws (not shown).Preferably, the front 18 is an integrally molded plastic piece having anoutlet grille 19 for permitting moisture laden air to be expelledtherethrough.

Positioned within the housing 12 and resting on bottom 14 is acup-shaped reservoir 22 having an opening facing upwardly in order toreceive and store a liquid, such as water, therein. The reservoir 22 maybe molded from polyethylene or the like. To drain the reservoirconveniently, there is provided a hollow projection 23 which isintegrally molded with the reservoir 22 and positioned in the rear sidewall near the bottom. The projection or drain 23 is threaded internallyand provided with a threaded plug or closure 24. Above the reservoir 22is a vertical wall 26 which depends from the top 13 and extends betweenthe sides 15 of the humidifier housing 12. A horizontal wall 27 extendsbetween the side walls 15 from the bottom of the vertical wall 26 to therear closure plate 17. Walls 26 and 27 may be fabricated from galvanizedsheet metal and are secured to housing 12 by welding or other suitablemeans, It will be appreciated that the walls 26 and 27 in conjunctionwith the housing 12 and rear plate 17 form a motor chamber 28, as may beseen in FIG. 3. The horizontally disposed wall 27 is positioned abovethe reservoir 22. A plurality of openings 29 in rear plate 17 define anair inlet to the motor chamber 28 and are positioned above theengagement between horizontal wall 27 and rear plate 17.

For the purpose of permitting air to move from the motor chamber 28 tothe space above reservoir 22, there is provided an opening defined by acircular throat 30 which is formed in the horizontal wall 27 above thereservoir 22 as is best shown in FIGS. 3 and 7. Preferably, the throat30 has a U-shaped cross-section in order to afford quiet flow of airtherethrough. Formed integrally with the U-shaped throat 30 is a bottomedge 31 which is below and turned away from the bight portion of thethroat. A cylindrically-shaped skirt or sheet 35 which is fabricatedpreferably from a porous foam material having a spongy texture, issecured to the throat 30 around the inside of the bight position.Therefore, a spray or soaking chamber 36 is defined between the throat30, the resilient sheet 35 and the liquid in reservoir 22. While thesheet 35 is substantially cylindrical in shape the upper portion isnecked down to a smaller diameter in order to securely fit within theU-shaped cross-section of the throat 30. It should be understood thatthe sheet 35 might also be attached directly to the horizontal portionof wall 27. In the present embodiment, the porous sheet 35 extends fromthe throat 30 to a point adjacent the bottom of the cupshaped reservoir22. When a fluid such as water is placed in the reservoir 22 as shown inFIG. 3, air entering through inlet openings29 may readily pass into themotor chamber 28 and subsequently flow into the spray chamber 36.

Straddling the circular throat 30 in the motor chamber 28 is asubstantially U-shaped supporting frame member 38 having its legs 39secured to the wall 27 by fastening means 40 such as'rivets. Referringto FIG. 7, the legs 39 are spaced back from the throat 30, and the bightportion 41 of the frame member 38 is positioned above the throat 30 inorder to prevent the relatively wide frame member from interfering withthe quiet controlled flow of air through the throat. In order tostrengthen the U-shaped member 38, the edges thereof are upturned. Inthe center of the bight portion 41 there is defined an irregularlyshapedmotor securing opening 42. In the illustrated embodiment the opening 42is of a square shape although any irregularly-shaped opening wouldsuffice. Suspended beneath the member 38 is an electrical motor 44, therotary axis of which is in vertical alignment and concentric with throat30. Centrally disposed on top of the motor 44 is a complementaryirregularly-shaped projection 45 having a threaded stud 46 extendingupwardly therefrom. Preferably, a doughnut-shaped resilient first pad 48overlies the top of the motor 44 and projection 45 with a centralopening to permit the stud 46 to pass therethrough. As seen in FIG. 9,the motor projection 45 is sufficiently smaller than the opening 42 inbight portion 41 so that the resilient pad 48 positioned therebetweenprevents contact between the motor and the frame member. Positionedabove the bight position 41 is. a second doughnut-shaped resilient pad49 which has an outside diameter greater than the opening 42 and has aninside diameter larger than the combination of projection 45 and thedouble thickness of first pad 48.

In order that the resilient motor mounting section may be properlysandwiched together, a cup-shaped plate 50 is positioned over the secondinsulatingpad 49 with the outer rim of the plate 50 extending downwardlyover the periphery of the pad 49. The plate 50 has a central openingwhich allows the stud 46 to pass therethrough. Holding this assemblytogether is a fastener or nut 51 which engages with the threaded stud 46to lock portion 41 between the two pads. In the assembled state, theresilient connection between the motor 44 and the frame member 38 allowsthe motor and parts attached thereto to be supported in a pendulousmanner. That is to say, the motor is provided with limited pivotalmovement with respect to the frame member 38 which greatly lessensvibration caused by the operation of the motor. In addition, the motor44 is completely separated from the frame 38 by resilient insulatingpads which dampen the vibration transmission therebetween to insurequiet operation of the humidifier.

For the purpose of affording air circulation within the housing 12 andmeans to water the porous sheet 35, motor 44 has a vertically dependentdrive shaft 55 which is concentric with throat 30 for supporting androtating fan 56 and pump 57. As may be conveniently seen in FIGS. 3 and4, the elongated hollow centrifugal pump 57 of the cone type has asubstantially tubular lower portion 58 with an opening at the bottom todefine a liquid inlet 59.. Preferably, the pump is molded from anonabsorbent plastic, such as high impact polystyrene. To assist theupward flow of water within the centrifugal pump tubular portion 58, aplurality of spaced radially extending vanes 60 are positioned at thebottom of portion 58 adjacent the inlet 59. In addition to impartingadditional impetus to the upward flow of liquid within the portion 58,the vanes 60 provide substantially uniform fluid flow irrespective ofthe fluid level within the reservoir 22. While the tubular portion 58may have a constant inside diameter, it is more practical to have aslight taper to facilitate the molding thereof. Integral with thetubular portion 58 and positioned thereabove is conical portion 61 whichfurther accelerates the upward and outward flow of the liquid. Formednear the top of the conical portion 61 is a cylindrical section 62having a top surface 63 which defines a top opening. A plurality ofradially spaced recesses or water discharge openings 65 are formed inthe cylindrical section 62 and extend upwardly toward surface 63. Therecesses 65 have bottoms 66 which are inclined outwardly from the insidesurface of cylindrical section 62 to the outside surface terminating atoutside discharging edges 67. According to the present embodiment, theinclined bottom 66 is fiat and adapted to propel the fluid forcedtherealong and discharge the fluid both outwardly and upwardly as itleaves the edges 67 when the pump is rotating.

Closing the top opening in the pump 57 defined by an upper surface 63 ofcylindrical section 62 is a cup-shaped cover 69 which is molded of aplastic material and is preferably cemented into rigid engagement withthe lower portion of the pump. Integrally formed with the cover 69 is anoutwardly extending horizontal flange 70 which is positioned immediatelyabove the discharge openings 65. A depending annular lip 71 is formedaround the periphery of flange 70 and is positioned outwardly from theopening 65. The bottom of the lip 71 comes to a point and forms anannular releasing edge 72 which depends below the discharging edges 67.With this construction the liquid which is guided by the inclined bottom66 is thrown against the bottom of the flange 70 or the inside of lip71. In either case, the liquid must pass downwardly over the releasingedge 71 before being hurled outwardly therefrom by centrifugal forcegenerated by the rotation of the pump by the drive shaft 55. Thus, theliquid pumped outwardly to the sheet 35 is generally thrown in ahorizontal plane with no upward force being exerted thereon. It isimportant that the liquid emanating from the pump 57 is not directedupwardly in which case the liquid would impinge upon the fan 56. Sincethe water used in the reservoir 22 may contain minerals which would bedeposited on any surface which the water continually impinges, it isimportant to keep the discharging water from hitting the fan. Further,objectionable noise would be generated if droplets of liquid were toimpinge upon the rotating fan. Therefore, it is very important that thewater from the pump does not come in contact with the fan 56. Theoutside surface of lip 71 is sloped with the releasing edge 72 havingthe largest diameter to prevent the liquid from being released from apoint above the edge 72. It will be appreciated by those skilled in theart that the water released from a cylindrical cone pump along ahorizontal line of discharge will have only a horizontal component dueto centrifugal force.

In order to secure the fan 56 to the pump 57, the cover 69 has avertically extending integral projection 74 which contains a metalinsert 75 molded therein. The insert 75 has a recessed diameter 76 whichis adapted to receive a resilient bushing 77 fabricated of rubber or thelike. The bushing 77 has an annular groove formed on the peripherythereof for receiving the fan 56. Thus, the

fan is mounted to the pump assembly through an intermediate rubberbushing 77 which dampens the vibration transmitted therebetween and alsohas the tendency to reduce the amount of dynamic unbalance of the fan.With respect to dynamic balance, it has been noted that the pendulummounting which allows pivotal movement between the motor, fan and pumpcombination with respect to the frame member 38, tends to reduce thetotal unbalance thereof. That is to say, the resilient connectionbetween the motor 44 and the frame member 38 greatly reduces the needfor accurate and costly dynamic balancing each of the motor 44, fan 56and pump 58. Another factor which favorably affects the dampening of thevibration of the rotating components is the liquid in the reservoir 22which comes into contact with the tubular portion 58 and acts as adampening means. Tests run on the present embodiment indicate asurprising lack of overall noise and vibration.

As thusfar disclosed, the rotation of the fan member 56 induces air flowas indicated by arrows in FIG. 3 through inlet openings 29 into themotor chamber 28 and thereafter through throat 30 into the spray chamber36 where the centrifugal pump 57 lifts the water from the reservoir 22and throws it uniformly around the top of the porous sheet 35. Therelatively dry air entering the spraying chamber 36 therefore must passoutwardly through the water saturated sheet 35 and thereby picking up anappreciable amount of moisture in so doing. After passing through thesheet 35, the moisture laden air is expelled from the housing 12 throughthe air outlet grille 19 in front 18. It should be appreciated thatwhile the pump is rotating a relatively constant volume of liquid iscontinually flushing and cleaning the porous sheet 35. To a great extentthis cleaning action reduces the minerals or other substances which arenot readily evaporable from hardening in and clogging the sheet to thedetriment of performance. Thus, this arrangement flushes the mineralsback into the reservoir for deposit on the walls thereof. Naturallyminerals deposited on the walls of the reservoir do not reduce theefficiency or output capacity of the humidifier.

Filling the reservoir 22 is easily accomplished by pouring water into awater inlet opening 80 defined in the top 13 of housing 12. The waterinlet 80 is formed at least in part by bending a guide chute 81 from thetop 12. It should be noted that chute 81 is angled downwardly towardvertical wall 26 which is provided with a porous resilient pad 82extending from the bottom of the wall 26 to near the top thereof. Thewater inlet 80 is additionally formed by flap 83 which is struckdownwardly along the opposite edge from where chute 81 is formed. Thetop of the pad 82 extends above the lower portionof flap 83. By thisconstruction, the water entering inlet 80 either strikes chute 81, whichdirects it onto resilient pad 82, or it falls directly on pad 82. Ineither case, the resilient pad 82 acts in a similar manner as a spongeto allow the water to flow slowly therethrough onto the sheet 35. Thus,the reservoir 22 is efficiently filled with water without splashing andconsequently with a minimum of noise. In addition, it is impossible forwater entering through inlet 80 to splash outwardly through air outletgrille 19. A door 85 is provided to cover the inlet 80 when filling isnot required. The door 85 is hinged between instrument panel sections 86and 87.

Since the humidifier herein disclosed is capable of introducing up to 12gallons of water every 24 hours and the reservoir is of the eight galloncapacity, it is convenient to have a control system for de-energizingthe motor circuit when the water level drops below a predetermined levelso that the humidifier will not require constant attention and may beused during the evening hours with the knowledge that the -unit willturn itself off if the water level drops below the predetermined amount.The system for controlling the operation of the humidifier 11 includesthe instrument control panel section 86 which contains a water levelgauge 88 to he described hereinafter and two visual indicating lights 89and 90. When the reservoir 22 is nearly empty, the visual indicatinglight 89 is energized and at the same time the motor 44 is preventedfrom operating until the reservoir is refilled. As a convenience, light90 comes on whenever the humidifier is turned on. The other instrumentpanel section 87 contains a control humidistat 91 which turns off themotor whenever a selected humidity level is reached. Also mounted on thepanel section 87 is a three button switch 92 containing control buttons93, 94 and 95 for selectively turning the motor off, to low speed or tohigh speed, respectively. Referring now to the schematic electriccircuit in FIG. 8, there is illustrated a motor 44 which is controlledby switch 92 whereby the actuating of the off button 93 opens switch 6contacts 98, 99 and 100. Upon actuation of the low speed button 94,contacts 98 and 100 are closed and lastly, when high speed button isdepressed, contacts 99 and 100 are closed. With this arrangement, thedepression of either of the motor control buttons 94 and 95 causescontact 100 to close, energizing the light 90 indicating that thehumidifier is turned on. The slow speed button 94 closes contact 98 sothat the entire widing of the motor is utilized while high speed button95 closes contact 99 which allows only a portion of the motor winding tobe energized. As is understood by those skilled in the art, thehumidistat 91 is wired in series with the motor 44 to prevent theoperation of the motor when the desired humidity which has been selectedis attained. In addition, water level switch 101 is connected in serieswith the motor 44 and humidistat 91 whereby the motor circuit is openedstopping the humidifier whenever the water level in the reservoir hasdropped below a preselected minimum. The liquid level indicating light89 is connected in parallel with the water level switch 101 so that itwill only light when the switch is open. The normally closed water levelswitch 101 is attached to vertical wall 26. For the purpose of actuatingthe switch 101 there is provided a link 105 having a float 106 disposedat one end and adapted to move in response to the liquid level inreservoir 22. The link 105 which may be made from a circular metal rodis pivotally supported on the side of the housing by a Z-shaped bracket107 having a pivot screw 108 which serves as a bearing for loopedportion of link 105, as is best shown in FIG. 3. The upper end of link105 extends toward the housing top 13 and has a hook 109 formed at itsend. As hereinbefore mentioned, the water level gauge 88 is positionedon the instrument panel section 86 and comprises a circular crystal L11which is received in a circular recess formed by the instrument panelsection 86,- a circular disc 112 bearing the indicia for the gaugethereon and a pointer 113 to visually indicate the quantity of liquidcontained in the reservoir 22. The pointer 113 is attached to a spindle114 which is rotat-ably supported between the top 13 and a bracket 115attached to the underside of the top 13 in a suitable manner such as byspot welding. Spindle 114 has on the lower end thereof an integral gear116 positioned between the top 13 and the bracket 115 to engage asegment gear 117 which is pivotally secured to the bracket 115 by pivotmember 118. In order that the pointer 1.13which is attachedto thespindle 114 may be actuated in response to the moveme'nt of the float106, a connecting member 119 is also pivotally attached to bracket 115by pivot member 118 and is secured to the segment gear 117 by means of afinger 117a which is struck from the segment gear and which passesthrough an opening 119a defined in the member 119. In addition, theconnecting member 119 has at the end remote the pivot member 118, a bentportion 11912 which is formed with an opening 119c disposed to receivethe hook 109 of link 105.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the float 106moves in response to the level of the liquid in reservoir 22. The link105 pivots about screw 108 which causes the hook 109 at the opposite endof the link to rotate the connecting member 119 which correspondinglyrotates the segment gear 117 and spindle 114 to position the pointer 113at the proper indicia on the disc 112.

In order for the water level gauge to provide a control function as wellas an indicating function, the member 119 is formed with a struck outprojection 119d which is disposed between the bent portion 11% and theopening 1119a. The projection 119d is provided to contact and actuatethe water level switch 101 Which is disposed on the wall 26. By thismeans the normally closed water level switch is opened by the contact ofprojection 119d when the liquid level in reservoir 22 is near the bottomthereof. Thus, as the float member 106 follows the liquid level to nearthe bottom of reservoir 22, the connecting member 119 is rotated by theaction of link 105 to a position where the projection 119d will contactthe normally closed switch 101 and open it thereby de-energizing themotor 44, fan 56 and pump 58. This feature is advantageous since thewater level in the reservoir 22 may drop below the bottom of pump 58while the user of the humidifier is not present. As previouslymentioned, upon the opening of water level switch 191, light 89 isenergized to indicate that the reservoir is empty and that the pump isno longer operating.

Tests conducted upon the humidifier described herein have indicated thatthe unit has a large capacity to disperse moisture into a relativelylarge area and at the same time is very quiet in operation. The largereservoir and refined control circuit allows the humidifier to beoperated for long periods of time without attention.

While there has been shown and described one embodiment of theinvention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changesand modifications may be made without departing from the invention andthat it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such changes andmodifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent ofthe United States is:

1. A humidifier comprising a housing, a cup-shaped reservoir with theopening facing upwardly disposed within said housing, wall means forminga chamber within said housing above said reservoir, an air inlet openingdefined by said housing into said chamber and a circular throat formedin said wall means above said reservoir, a frame member in said chambersupporting a motor above said circular throat so that a rotatable motorshaft depends downwardly toward said throat and is concentric therewith,means on said frame member resiliently supporting said motor only at thecenter of the end remote from said shaft, fan means attached to saidshaft slightly above said throat, a porous sheet attached to said wallmeans surrounding said throat and extending downwardly into saidreservoir, a centrifugal pump enclosed by said sheet and securedcoaxially to said shaft and extending into said reservoir for dispersingliquid from said reservoir onto said sheet, and said housing defining adischarge opening remote from said chamber for allowing the moistureladen air which is forced through the sheet by said fan means to egresstherefrom.

2. The humidifier of claim 1 wherein said housing defines a liquid inletopening for allowing the reservoir to be filled, a resilient padattached to said wall means, a chute member integral with said housingat the edge of said opening and angled downwardly therefrom to guideliquid against said resilient pad, and said pad being disposed over saidsheet whereby liquid impinging thereon falls onto said porous sheet andflows down said sheet to said reservoir.

3. The humidifier of claim 1 wherein said hollow centrifugal pumpcomprises a lower substantially tubular portion being provided with aliquid inlet opening at the bottom, a conical portion being disposedabove said tubular portion and having a relatively short cylindricalsection at the top thereof, a plurality of spaced recesses in saidcylindrical section each having an outwardly inclined bottom whichterminates at the outer edge of said recess, and a pump cover enclosingsaid conical portion and having an annular lip extending downwardly pastsaid outer edges and spaced outwardly therefrom.

4. The humidifier of claim 1 wherein a normally closed switch ispositioned in the electrical circuit with said electrically poweredmotor, said switch being associated with said housing, a float gaugecomprising a link with a float member at one end adapted to move inresponse to the liquid level in said reservoir and pivotally attached tosaid housing, a dial member exposed and carried on said housing, saiddial member activated to visually indicate the liquid level in saidreservoir by the rotation of a spindle gear, a segment gear pivotallyattached to said housing at a point spaced from said link and in powertransmitting engagement with said spindle gear, means interconnectingsaid link and segment gear to rotate said spindle gear in response tomovement of said link, and an integral flange formed on said segmentgear and positioned to engage said switch and open it when saidreservoir is nearly empty.

5. A humidifier comprising a rectangular housing including a top, bottomand two sides and open at the front and rear, 2. vertical wall dependingfrom said top of the housing and a horizontal wall extending from thebottom of said vertical wall to the rear of said housing to define amotor chamber, a cup-shaped reservoir facing upwardly and supported onsaid bottom, said horizontal wall defining a circular throat having aU-shaped cross-section, a porous sheet attached to said horizontal wallaround said throat to form a continuous sheet which depends into saidreservoir, a frame member disposed within said housing and secured tosaid horizontal wall, an electric motor positioned above said throat insaid chamber and supported only at the center of its upper portion bysaid frame member, said motor having a downwardly depending shaft whichcarries a fan and pump means, said pump means extending into saidreservoir, a plate secured to said housing covering the rear opening andin sealing engagement with said horizontal wall, and an air inletopening defined in said plate above the engagement with said horizontalwall affording air access to said motor chamber whereby rotation of saidfan and said pump means forces a flow of air through said inlet, saidthroat, said sheet and the front of said housing.

6. In a humidifier comprising a housing, a cup-shaped reservoir disposedwithin said housing for receiving and storing a liquid therein, a framemember positioned over said reservoir, a motor having a drive shaftdepending toward said reservoir resiliently supported only at the centerof the end remote from said shaft by said member in a pendulous mannerpermitting limited pivotal movement, and a pump means attached to saidshaft in coaxial relationship and extending into said reservoir.

7. In a humidifier having a cup-shaped reservoir with the opening facingupwardly and adapted to receive liquid therein, a motor verticallydisposed over said reservoir with a shaft extending downwardly, anelongated hollow centrifugal pump connected to said shaft and thelongitudinal axis of said pump being coaxial with said shaft, said pumpcomprising a lower tubular portion defining a liquid opening at thebottom thereof, a plurality of ribs radially spaced along the inside ofsaid tubular portion near the bottom for assisting the upward flow ofliquid when said pump is rotated by said shaft, a conical portiondisposed above said tubular portion for acceleration of the flow ofliquid, a relatively short cylindrical section positioned immediatelyabove said conical portion, a plurality of spaced discharge recessesdefined in said cylindrical section with the bottoms thereof inclinedoutwardly and upwardly to form discharge edges along the outside of saidcylindrical section, and a cover for said pump provided with anoutwardly extending flange having an annular depending lip positionedbelow and spaced outwardly from said discharge edges to receive theliquid egressing from said discharge edges and to release the liquiduniformly in a horizontal planev 8. In a humidifier including a verticaldisposed electric motor having a downwardly extending rotatable shaft, acentrifugal pump secured to and coaxial with said shaft comprising ahollow tubular portion having a liquid inlet opening near the bottomthereof, an integral upright conical portion above said tubular portionto increase the velocity of the liquid forced through said tubularportion, a cylindrical section integral with said conical portion at thetop thereof and being provided with a plurality of spaced recesseshaving outwardly and upwardly inclined bottoms which terminate atdischarging edges spaced below the top of said cylindrical section, anda cover for said pump enclosing the top of said cylindrical section andbeing provided with an outwardly extending integral flange whichterminates at a downwardly depending annular lip having a bottomreleasing edge which is positioned below said discharging edges andspaced outwardly therefrom.

9. The humidifier of claim 8 wherein said cover has an upwardlyextending projection for attaching said pump and shaft together, and aresilient bushing connected to said projection and carrying a fan.

10. In a humidifier comprising a vertically aligned electric motor beingprovided with a downwardly extending drive shaft, a reservoir positionedbelow said motor, a fan and pump means connected to said shaft anddepending into said reservoir, a frame member supporting said motor onlynear the top thereof by a resilient connection including anirregularly-shaped projection on the top of said motor with an upwardlyextending stud, a first resilient pad having an opening in which saidprojection is disposed with said stud extending therethrough, said framemember defining a complementary irregularlyshaped opening adapted toreceive from the bottom a correspondingly irregularly-shaped portion ofsaid first pad and projection so that said motor is prevented fromrotating and said motor is separated from said frame member by saidfirst pad, a ring-shaped resilient pad disposed above said frame memberhaving an internal aperture greater than said projection so that aportion of said first pad and projection are received therein, a platepositioned over said ring-shaped pad, and fastener means positioned oversaid plate to cooperate with said stud for sandwiching said resilientconnection together whereby said motor and frame are resilientlyconnected with said motor permitted limited pivotal movement.

11. In a humidifier comprising a housing containing a reservoir forholding liquid; a frame member horizontally positioned over saidreservoir and defining an opening therein; an electric motor suspendedbelow said member by a resilient connection including, a projectionextending upwardly from said motor through said opening, a resilientmeans positioned between said projection and member and extending abovesaid member, said projection being smaller than said opening, theportion of said resilient means extending above said member being largerthan said opening, a plate disposed above said means having an apertureto receive said projection therethrough, a fastener above said plate forretaining said motor vertically, said resilient means keeping saidplate, projection and motor spaced from said member whereby said motoris pendulously supported; a shaft extending downward from said motor;and a pump means connected to said shaft and extending into said liquidholding reservoir.

12. In a humidifier comprising a housing containing a liquid holdingreservoir, a horizontally disposed frame member connected to saidhousing and positioned above said reservoir, a motor pendulouslysuspended beneath said member by a first resilient connection positionedtherebetween at the center of said motor, said motor having a downwardlyextending drive shaft, a rotary pump coaxially attached to said shaftand extending into said reservoir, and a fan coaxially attached to theupper portion of said pump by an interposed second resilient connectionwhereby said connections dampen the vibration transmitted to saidmember.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,626,667 5/1927Cramer et a1. 261-91 1,808,935 6/1931 Planert 261-91 1,907,121 5/1933Robbins 261-106 2,030,453 2/ 1936 Kresser 261-91 2,058,973 10/1936Goosmann 62-314 X 2,225,954 12/ 1940 Grubb.

2,397,980 4/1946 Petri 230-117 X 2,587,197 2/1952 Mousel.

2,702,087 2/ 1955 Beier.

2,854,090 9/1958 Slough.

2,889,570 6/1959 Duff 230-117 X 3,130,245 4/1964 Banks 261-91 X3,193,261 7/1965 Nesbitt 261-91 X 3,220,707 11/1965 Weatherston et al.261-91 3,229,450 1/1966 Stern 261-91 3,253,820 5/1966 Seil 261-27FOREIGN PATENTS 678,477 9/1952 Great Britain. 904,606 8/1962 GreatBritain. 1,339,984 9/1963 France.

HARRY B. THORNTON, Primary Examiner.

T. R. MILES, Assistant Examiner.

1. A HUMIDIFIER COMPRISING A HOUSING, A CUP-SHAPED RESERVOIR WITH THE OPENING FACING UPWARDLY DISPOSED WITHIN SAID HOUSING, WALL MEANS FORMING A CHAMBER WITHIN SAID HOUSING ABOVE SAID RESERVOIR, AN AIR INLET OPENING DEFINED BY SAID HOUSING INTO SAID CHAMBER AND A CIRCULAR THROAT FORMED IN SAID WALL MEANS ABOVE SAID RESERVOIR, A FRAME MEMBER IN SAID CHAMBER SUPPORTING A MOTOR ABOVE SAID CIRCULAR THROAT SO THAT A ROTATABLE MOTOR SHAFT DEPENDS DOWNWARDLY TOWARD SAID THROAT AND IS CONCENTRIC THEREWITH, MEANS ON SAID FRAME MEMBER RESILIENTLY SUPPORTING SAID MOTOR ONLY AT THE CENTER OF THE END REMOTE FROM SAID SHAFT, FAN MEANS ATTACHED TO SAID SHAFT SLIGHTLY ABOVE SAID THROAT, A POROUS SHEET ATTACHED TO SAID WALL MEANS SURROUNDING SAID THROAT AND EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY INTO SAID RESERVOIR, A CENTRIFUGAL PUMP ENCLOSED BY SAID SHEET AND SECURED COAXIALLY TO SAID SHAFT AND EXTENDING INTO SAID RESERVOIR FOR DISPERSING LIQUID FROM SAID RESERVOIR ONTO SAID SHEET, AND SAID HOUSING DEFINING A DISCHARGE OPENING REMOTE FROM SAID CHAMBER FOR ALLOWING THE MOISTURE LADEN AIR WHICH IS FORCED THROUGH THE SHEET BY SAID FAN MEANS TO EGRESS THEREFROM.
 7. IN A HUMIDIFIER HAVING A CUP-SHAPED RESERVOIR WITH THE OPENING FACING UPWARDLY AND ADAPTED TO RECEIVE LIQUID THEREIN, A MOTOR VERTICALLY DISPOSED OVER SAID RESERVOIR WITH A SHAFT EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY, AN ELONGATED HOLLOW CENTRIFUGAL PUMP CONNECTED TO SAID SHAFT AND THE LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF SAID PUMP BEING COAXIAL WITH SAID SHAFT, SAID PUMP COMPRISING A LOWER TUBULAR PORTION DEFINING A LIQUID OPENING AT THE BOTTOM THEROF, A PLURALITY OF RIBS RADIALLY SPACED ALONG THE INSIDE OF SAID TUBULAR PORTION NEAR THE BOTTOM FOR ASSISTING THE UPWARD FLOW OF LIQUID WHEN SAID PUMP IS ROTATED BY SAID SHAFT, A CONICAL PORTION DISPOSED ABOVE SAID TUBULAR PORTION FOR ACCELERATION OF THE FLOW OF LIQUID, A RELATIVELY SHORT CYLINDRICAL SECTION POSITIONED IMMEDIATELY ABOVE SAID CONICAL PORTION, A PLURALITY OF SPACED DISCHARGE RECESSES DEFINED IN SAID CYLINDRICAL SECTION WITH THE BOTTOMS THEREOF INCLINED OUTWARDLY AND UPWARDLY TO FORM DISCHARGE EDGES ALONG THE OUTSIDE OF SAID CYLINDRICAL SECTION, AND A COVER FOR SAID PUMP PROVIDED WITH AN OUTWARDLY EXTENDING FLANGE HAVING AN ANNULAR DEPENDING LIP POSITIONED BELOW AND SPACED OUTWARDLY FROM SAID DISCHARGE EDGES TO RECEIVE THE LIQUID EGRESSING FROM SAID DISCHARGE EDGES AND TO RELEASE THE LIQUID UNIFORMLY IN A HORIZONTAL PLANE. 